Indexing mechanism for metal-working machines



March 5, 1929, 5 BROWN 1,703,986

INDEXING MECHANISM FOR METAL WORKING MACHINES Filed May 26, 1923 3 ShBOCS-SILGGt 1 E g N \in 33") March 5, 1929.

R. S. BROWN INDEXING MECHANISM FOR METAL WORKING MAGI'QNES .s Sheets- Sheet Filed May 26, 1923 Arrazmsr R. 5. BROWN 1,703,986

INDEXING MECHANISM FOR METAL WORKING MACHINES March 5, 1929.

Filed ma 26, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Mar. 5,1929. I

UNITED STATES PATENT. orrlcs.

ROBERT S. BROWN, OF NEW BRITAIN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE NEW BRITAIN MACHINE COMPANY, OF NEW BRITAIN, CONNECTICUT,- A CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT.

INDEXING MECHANISM FOR METAL-WORKING H ACHINES.

Application filed May 26, 1923. Serial No. 641,682.

This invention relates to metal workin machines. In that form of embodiment o the invention which I have selected for illustration in the drawings. accompanying 6 and forming part of the present specification, the machine is organized as an auto matic lathe. This particular disclosure will be set forth fully in the following description. Obviously, I am not restricted to the showing made by said drawings and description, as I may depart therefrom in a number of respects within the scope of the invention defined by the claims succeeding said description. As a matter of fact some or all of the features of the invention can be incorporated in wood working machines.

It is. an object of the invention to provide a-novel form of indexing mechanism for a turret or the like.

It is another object to provide a turret upon a slide having novel means for adjusting the turret on the slide.

. It is a further object to improve certain details of construction as will hereinafter appear,

In the drawings which show, for illustrative purposes only, a preferred form of the invention Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a metal-working machiiie involving-the invention.

ig. 2 is a side elevation of the machine. Fig. 3 isan end elevation as seen from the left in Fig. 2.

' Fig. 4 is an end elevation as seen from theri ht in said Fig. 2.

ig. 5 is a section on the line 5-5 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a-transverse sectionon the irregular line 6- 6 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 7 is a section on the line 7-7 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 8 is a vertical section on line 88.

of Fig. 9 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fi 9 is a vertical section on the line 99 of Fig. 8 looking in the direction of the arrows. I I

Like characters referto like parts throughout the several figures.

The different parts of the machine are mounted upon a suitableframe work such as that denoted in a general way by 2 and which usually comprises two end frame members, as 3 and 4, connected at their upper ends by box portion as 5. Any other suitable type of carrier orframing might be used for sustaining the operative parts'of I uch tapping tool or tools are 0 erated 'by means'of the pulleys 9 andlO t rough the ears 11 and 12 practically in the manner ully disclosed in the Letters Patent 1,125,- 054, January 19, 1915. It will be understood, of course, that the pulleys 9 and 10 .gulre a reverse rotation, such as in tapping.

are so belted in'practice as to be rotated in opposite direction and through shifting means comprisin clutch mechanism 13.

The shaft 14 as fastened, as shown, to an end thereof a worm wheel 15 in mesh with the worm 16 fastened to the transverse shaft 17 between the ends thereof and sustained by suitable bearings upon an end of the frame 2. As shown in Fig. 3, said shaft has attached to an end thereof a bevel gear 18 in mesh with a like bevel gear 19 at an end of the shaft 20 supported upon a side of the -frame 2. Fastened to said shaft 20. isa gear 21in mesh with a gear 22 carried by a shaft 23 sustained like the other shaft by bearings upon the side of the frame 2. This shaft 23 carries the tight and the loose pulle s21 and 25 which can be driven by a belt not shown).

The shaft 14, as represented in Fig. 2, carries at an end thereo the drum 26 shown as being of cam form and having upon its periphery .cam stri s 27 and 28. The cam strips 27 and 28 auction to reciprocate the slide denoted in a general way by 29. As shown, the cam strips '27 and 28 act against a stud 30, shown as a roller on the block 31 which, as represented, is adjustable for a reason that will hereinafter appear. As

shown, the thrust of the cam drum 26 is taken up by a thrust-receiving bearing, such as an anti-friction roller 32 which, as represented, is sustained by an end of the frame 2.and which for such purpose bears against the rim portion of the cam drum 26.

' be turned.

ment of indexing action.

It should be noted that the tool carrier 7 and the slide or carrier 29 move longitudinally relatively to each other along the same or parallel lines, although the tool carriage is fixed when the machine is set for operation. The slide 29 is slidably held to the table top by strips, as 34 and 35, which are attached to the upper sides of the frame 2 by screws or some equivalent means, as 36. It will be understood that during each operation the slide 29 is given one full reciprocation, being first advanced 'or moved inwardly to bring the tools into working relation with the work carried upon the slide 29 and at the conclusion of this particular action, the slide 29 is drawn back. During the drawing back action and at about the time when the slide 29 reaches the end of its outward stroke or its .movement toward the right in Figs. 1 and 2, and when in such relation as shown in Fig. 6, it is in position for indexing. The shaft 37 is sustained as shown for intermittent or step by step rotation by longitudinally separated bearings, as 38 and 39, supported on the slide 29.

The parts in Figs. 6 and 7 are assumed to occupy the position just at the commence- Upon the shaft 37 is fastened by splining,.or in some other proper way, the star wheel 40 which has upon its periphery a succession of surfaces 41 between which are situated the radial slots 42, there being as shown five of such faces 41 and a corresponding number of radial slots 42. Upon the top of the slide 29 is mounted for transverse reciprocation the locking bolt 43, which is advanced or moved inwardly by springs, as 44 (Figs. 1 and 5). The bolt 43 is guided in a bracket 45 on'the slide 29 and it has, as shown in Fig. 7, a depending stud or pin 46 engaging with a lever 47 on the. rock shaft 48. The rock shaft 48 is provided with a depending arm,

as 49, which is jointed to a link 50 which is similarly united to a rock lever 51 having at its upper end a stud 52 shown as anti-friction roll, the rock shaft being co-oper'ative with a cam 54, which is rigid with the cam drum 26 on the outer side thereof. When the slide 29 has reached its extreme outward position, as shown in Fig. 6, the cam 54 will engage the stud or roller 52 as the cam 54 rotates and on the continued rotation will swing the rock arm 51 to the left in Fig. 7 to pull the link 50 and effect a correspondin action of the rock arm 49 toward the lef t inFig. 7 and to thus swing the rock arm 47 to the right so that said rock arm 47, being in engagement with the stud 46, will draw the bolt 43 backwardly and out of engagement with the slot 55 which it may be for the time being occupying, thus releasing the wheel or face plate 56 which is fastened to the shaft 37 so that said shaft 37 can When the locking bolt 43 is withdrawn from the wheel or face plate 56 the star wheel 40 is free to be rotated for indexing and the 'means by which this is accomplished is shown in Figs. 5 to 8 inclusive. The framing 2 supports the offset or eccentric bearing 57, as shown in Fig. 8, and which carries the Geneva finger 58, which is eccentric to the shaft 14, the center of motion of said Geneva finger being as shown above the axis of the shaft so that, as will hereinafter be explained, said Geneva finger during a portion of its stroke is given an accelerated or rapid motion which performs an important part in the function of indexing, as machine will return to work quickly. The cam drum 26, as shown in Fig. 9, has in it'a radial slot 59 to receive for traveling movement a stud 60, shown as an anti-friction roller, extending laterally from the Geneva finger 58, as represented in Fig. 9. As the cam drum 26 rotates, the pin and slot connection 59-60 serves to carry the Geneva arm 58 around with the cam drum. Someform of sliding connection between the fin er and the cam drum is desirable because t e Geneva finger 58 is rotatable about the center of the eccentric 57, while the cam drum is rotated about a different center, namely, the center of the shaft 14. It will be clear that, with the parts positioned as shown in Fig. 9, the angular -speed of the Geneva finger 58 will be relatively great, while when the cam drum has rotated 180 degrees from the position shown in Fig. 9, the roller 60 will occupy a position nearer the center of the cam drum, and assuming a fixed rate of angular speed of the cam drum, the angular speed of the Geneva finger will be slower. The roller 61 carried by the Geneva finger successively enters and leaves each of the radial i slots 42 in the star wheel. The arrangement of a Geneva finger and a Geneva wheel for indexing a turret or the like is not, aside from thevariable speed of the Geneva finger, novel, and is in fact well understood and needs no particular description.

It will be remembered that I have men tioned the fact that the block 31 which is operable by cam drum 26 is adjustable 1on gitudinally .of the main slide 29, this adjustment being necessary to position the parts properly with respect to. the cam strips 27 and 2,8 and the star wheel 40. From the slide 31 extends the bolts or screws 65, they passing through elongated slots 66, the heads of the bolts or screws when the latter are set, impinging against the part 31. By backing off the screws 65 the slide 31 can be adjusted by the screws 67 and when the adjustment is obtained the screws 65 will be set up.

It will be evident from theforegoing de- I scription in conjunction with the annexed carrier and a tool carrier opposite each other, the work carrier being organized to index the work which is successively acted on by the tools. It will also be observed that in the construction to which I am alluding that the work carrier is supported in a slide whichis intermittently reciprocated to and from the tool carrier and the tools carried thereby. The portion of this slide which extends 129-,

yond the work carrier toward the tool car rier is sloped downwardly so as to shed the chips correspondingly. i

What I claim is:

1. In a' device of the character described,

a tool holder, a work holder, said holders beg ing reciprocable relatively to each other, '5 slotted member carried by one of said holders, an actuating'arm having means for engagement with said slotted member for retating the latter with a step by step movement, said actuating arm being mounted for rotation about one center, a driving member for said arm mounted for rotation about a different center, and pin and slot connecting means between said actuating-arm and driving member..

2. In a device of the character described for rotating a member with a step by step movement including, a slotted member, an

actuating arm for engaging said slottedmember for rotating the same step by step, said arm being rotatably mounted on an eccentric bearing, a rotatable driving member for said arm, and a sliding connection between said arm and driving member.

3. In a device of the character described, an actuating arm mounted for rotation about one axis, a driving member for said arm mounted for rotation about a difierent but parallel axis, means for connecting said driving member and actuating arm for rotating said actuating arm at a variable rate, a member to be rotated with a step by step movement by said actuating arm, and means for intermittently connecting said last mentioned member with said arm.

4. In a device of the character described, a driving member mounted for rotation about one center, said driving member having a slot therein, an actuating arm mounted forrotation about a difierent center, said arm having a pin for engagement with said slot, and a star wheel to be engaged by said actuating arm for rotating the star wheel with a step by step movement.

5. In a device of the character described, a tool holder, a work holder, one of said holders being rotatably mounted u on a main slide, an auxiliary slide on sai main slide and longitudinally adjustable relatively thereto, a Geneva wheel rotatably connected to and movable longitudinally with said auxiliary slide and secured against rotation to said holder, means for reciprocating said auxiliary slide whereby said tool holder carried by said main slide will be 'parallel but eccentric to the axis of said Geneva arm for imparting a variable angular movement to said Geneva arm while the latter is in engagement with said Geneva wheel.

8. In a metal working machine, an indexible member, a Geneva wheel for indexing the latter step by step, a Geneva arm for actuating said Geneva. wheel, a member rotatable about an axis parallel but eccentric to the axis of said Geneva arm, and connecting means between-said member and arm for imparting a continuously variable angular movement to said arm.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

ROBERT SQ BROWN. 

